Arrival of Philadelphia Union created jobs for residents of Chester

CHESTER -- Kyle DeGraphenreed said he could see a bright, peaceful future for a city he once deemed as dangerous as the war-torn Middle East.

The offspring of a long list of Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. employees, DeGraphenreed grew up hearing stories about Chester's former industrial prowess and economic strength.

"But for me, coming up in my childhood, it got a little different," the East 10th Street resident said. "A lot of jobs started leaving. There was a lot of crime, drugs and killing."

Advertisement

However, DeGraphenreed said he has hope for the city, based in an economic revival experts say may be slowly but surely emanating from the city's redevelopment plan.

For many city residents, the epicenter of this revival is the freshly completed stadium of Major League Soccer's newest franchise, the Philadelphia Union.

A Local 845 carpenter, DeGraphenreed said the Union's home, PPL Park, will provide tremendous economic impact, first and foremost by bringing tons of jobs to the city. Chester residents obtained 260 of the 491 "game-day" positions offered during a recent career fair at the stadium.

"The reality is jobs will bring money for the people, and crime will go down," he said. "Crime will go down."

The change is already evident to DeGraphenreed. City businesses have put up new signs, dilapidated housing has been torn down and new developments and homes are being erected.

DeGraphenreed said he recently had to put his car in reverse when he drove past a new apartment complex on Third Street.

"When did that get built? I was amazed at how fast they were building stuff, cleaning stuff up," he said. "I'm like, wow they are really serious about turning this whole thing around."

Fellow Chester resident Maria Zack said she, too, has noticed a change in the scenery -- and it's not just a 18,500-seat stadium.

"I think there is an excitement," said Zack, a resident of West 24th Street. "I mean, even on my block, you can see the homes just changing. They're maintaining their property, they're painting the exterior, they're cutting their grass, they're planting flowers. I mean, there are six or seven new trees just on my street."

The sense of civic pride was one of the reasons Zack and her husband purchased their home in 2006.

A 2002 graduate of Widener University, Zack said her position as accounting office manager for the park's catering company, Ovations, allows her ample opportunity to interact with fellow employees -- many of whom are her neighbors.

"They keep saying to me they are so excited and happy for the opportunity," she said. Zack said she was pleasantly surprised by the flood of phone calls following the stadium's career fair. "Other positions, when I was in a hiring capacity, people just didn't seem to care or follow though as much as they have in the city."

Widener University economics professor Joseph Fuhr said a major factor in the city's revitalization was the hiring of Chester residents at the stadium.

"(It will cause) the multiplier effect, to the extent that those people hired in Chester will spend all their money in Chester," he said. The city of Chester will also benefit financially, as those hired residents are also taxpayers, he said.

Chester Economic Development Authority executive director Dave Sciocchetti said the soccer stadium was just one part of a massive waterfront revitalization plan for the commonwealth's first city.

However, it will not happen overnight, he added.

Along with Harrah's Chester Casino and Racetrack, and the planned exit ramps on Interstate 95 that will feed directly to Route 291, the city could see a major change in roughly 5-10 years.

"If you look at the city of Chester, its waterfront, which was at the base of its economic success, took 30 to 40 years to decline," he said. "The same thing is going to play out, only in reverse."

Though not a resident of the city, Patricia Banta and her husband have owned and operated the B & S Deli and Sunoco gas station on Route 291 for the past 25 years. During the Union's home opener June 27, they got walloped by a crowd they were surprised to see.

"The first game, we did well," said Banta, a resident of the Wallingford section of Nether Providence.

Banta said her deli provided sandwiches to fans going to and coming from the game, in addition to offering parking in a rented lot next door for $10 a vehicle.

Banta said she thought it would be a good thing for everyone involved -- especially city residents. Banta said she was excited for residents of other towns to come see the good side of a city that has too many critics for her liking.

"We want them to go back home and say, 'Wow, this was a really nice place,'" she said.

Taking a break from frying foot-long hot dogs at a stand in the stadium, Kerlin Street resident Damon Lewis said he was excited to be part of a positive change for Chester -- and part of history.

"Being part of the Union is very important to me," he said. "I think it's great for the city. It's brought jobs to the city. It's brought some pride in the city of Chester."

While many outsiders focus on the state of emergency recently declared in certain areas of Chester, Zack said it was wrong to categorize the entire city based upon a few problem areas.

"People just look and say things aren't going to change, and they are really skeptical. I just hope they can come down, attend a game, and see what is going on before you make an opinion," she said. "There are so many good things going on down here."